RezN8
Blick-um, blick-um...
Some old-school advice:
When I first started playing drums it was all about how hard and fast I could hit em. So I bashed the living daylights out them, trying to be heard over Marshall stacks and such.
I'd go through a couple pairs of sticks each time I played, and the heads would either have deep dents in them or they would split open after about a week - and those were the 2-ply heads. Cymbals lasted maybe two months before they were cracked and useless.
I never had lessons, so I thought this was normal. Then one day I read an old article by Ed Shaugnessy (Tonight Show w/Carson - I know, old school, right?). He said "if you're going through sticks and heads like they are going out of style, then you're simply not hitting the drums correctly."
That one sentence hit me like a ton of bricks! What did HE know about rock/punk/metal,etc. drumming anyway? He's just a jazz player.
But he's right folks, there are many ways to strike the drums to make em sound good -- and there are many more ways that'll make em sound bad, and cause damage -- to gear AND your body.
Think of the Kung Fu experts who can crush 20 bricks with a single chop. If hit the WRONG way, he'd break every bone in his hand, wrist and arm. (It wouldn't sound too good neither :0).
After reading that article, I focused and readjusted the way I played. I NEVER broke a cymbal after that. I can play even harder now, but sticks last a lot longer. So do drumheads. I saved a lot of money too! HOW? By forcing myself to readjust the way I was playing -- the way I set things up, and how to hit the drums and make 'em sound good.
Start with this before you even think of setting up any drum mics and you've won half the battle of sounding good on recordings. Hope this info helps.
All the best, Rez
When I first started playing drums it was all about how hard and fast I could hit em. So I bashed the living daylights out them, trying to be heard over Marshall stacks and such.
I'd go through a couple pairs of sticks each time I played, and the heads would either have deep dents in them or they would split open after about a week - and those were the 2-ply heads. Cymbals lasted maybe two months before they were cracked and useless.
I never had lessons, so I thought this was normal. Then one day I read an old article by Ed Shaugnessy (Tonight Show w/Carson - I know, old school, right?). He said "if you're going through sticks and heads like they are going out of style, then you're simply not hitting the drums correctly."
That one sentence hit me like a ton of bricks! What did HE know about rock/punk/metal,etc. drumming anyway? He's just a jazz player.
But he's right folks, there are many ways to strike the drums to make em sound good -- and there are many more ways that'll make em sound bad, and cause damage -- to gear AND your body.
Think of the Kung Fu experts who can crush 20 bricks with a single chop. If hit the WRONG way, he'd break every bone in his hand, wrist and arm. (It wouldn't sound too good neither :0).
After reading that article, I focused and readjusted the way I played. I NEVER broke a cymbal after that. I can play even harder now, but sticks last a lot longer. So do drumheads. I saved a lot of money too! HOW? By forcing myself to readjust the way I was playing -- the way I set things up, and how to hit the drums and make 'em sound good.
Start with this before you even think of setting up any drum mics and you've won half the battle of sounding good on recordings. Hope this info helps.
All the best, Rez
